After an heartfelt pregame ceremony for the four fallen Oakland Police Department Officers and a rousing fireworks display, baseball was back at the Coliseum.
A's rookie pitcher Brett Anderson took the mound in his major league debut against the division rival Mariners. Anderson retired the side in the first on only six pitches and the A's spotted him a run in the bottom of the inning when Orlando Cabrera scored on a Seattle error. The second inning wasn't as kind to the rookie as Seattle put up five runs against Oakland, giving the Mariners a commanding four run lead. Anderson (the first A's rookie to start a home opener), recovered to keep Oakland in the game by pitching four scoreless innings to finish his outing strong.
The A's offense scored three runs (including two in the bottom of the sixth) to close it to 5-4, but the Mariners held on to spoil the home opener.
Over fifty policeman were on hand for the ceremonies. Three of the four officers were also security guards at the Coliseum.
